


The strength of the ocean

by GrilledBeer



Category: One Piece
Genre: All Blue (One Piece), Blood, M/M, Zoro's POV, classic zosan slow burn, they kiss at the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-17 19:41:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28854495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrilledBeer/pseuds/GrilledBeer
Summary: At first Zoro thought the cook was ill, but he never seemed to be getting better. There was also this weird exercise that the idiot said was "listening to the ocean". Yet as the cook suffered silently on his own, he always looked out to the sea with that dreamy smile on his face. It was almost as if he was secretly conversing with the ocean.Unable to do anything but watch from the side, Zoro slowly found himself pulled closer as he came to understand the meaning of his own feeling.Classic ZoSan moments, pre-timeskip.
Relationships: Roronoa Zoro/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 12
Kudos: 93





	The strength of the ocean

It wasn’t like Zoro was paying any extra attention. Really, he wasn’t. It was just that the cook was always so loud and flashy and generally annoying, that he unavoidably came under the radar all the time. And Zoro couldn’t switch it off. Not for lack of trying.

That was precisely how Zoro came to notice that somehow the cook was not being his usual self. To his astonishment, he realised this solely because the idiot was _not_ as annoying as usual. That, and the fact that his already pale face had become a tad bit paler when Zoro saw him this morning. That on its own was kinda like sirens screeching that something was actually wrong with the cook.

Which was weird, because the cook was completely fine on the tropical island where they had last anchored.

At first, Zoro thought it was just his imagination. They hadn’t encountered any enemy whatsoever out in the open sea. But somehow, the cook didn’t seem to go back to his usual self.

Now that they had set sailed since the day before yesterday, the cook continued to show signs of peculiarity. His dark blue eyes were a stark contrast to his complexion, looking curiously glassy. It was as if he was not completely there. Neither was he as loud as usual when he shouted at Luffy for sneaking food at dinner last night.

Had he taken ill or something? Did he contract something from that island, if that was the case? The place was one of those unassuming, interchangeable islands they came across every so often that Zoro didn’t give it much thought when they had left it behind. Nothing memorable about it at all. In fact, he hadn’t even bothered to learn its name in the first place. Maybe some sickness was going around on that island and the cook had caught it? If that had been the case, Chopper would have said something already, though.

Zoro found the object of his frustration on the quarterdeck on the third night after they had put the island behind them. The moon was full and high on the sky, casting pale beams of light through the tropical mists. The cook was leaning against the railing, an unlit cigarette hanging between his fingers. He did that a lot lately…not smoking his cigarette. He just held it unlit between his fingers, as if finding some unspoken comfort in the roll of tobacco alone.

The cook was staring at the ripples the Going Merry created as the ship made its way forward. If he noticed Zoro’s approach, he didn’t show any outward indication. He seemed lost in his own world, eyes on the water, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

“Hey.”

There was a heartbeat before the cook acknowledged him.

“…Hey yourself.”

He didn’t look at Zoro. His gaze still wandered the expanse of dark surface beneath them.

“Oi, I’m talking to you.”

“Hm?”

The infuriating bastard just responded absentmindedly, never deigning to turn his gaze on Zoro. The distracted smile was still present. Zoro couldn’t put the look of that smile into words.

How annoying.

Zoro put himself between the cook and the railing, blocking the other’s view of the ocean.

“What on earth are you doing?”

Zoro had meant to get on his nerves, to get a reaction, but the cook just let out a long suffering sigh and glanced at Zoro in exasperation. He crossed his arms and grumbled.

“Can’t a guy get a smoke in peace around this ship?”

“You were not smoking.”

When Zoro pointed that out, the cook looked down at the unlit cigarette in his hand. He was visibly surprised, but quickly hid his own reaction and put up an annoyed frown.

“I was about to.”

Zoro didn’t buy that for a second. He stared hard at the cook, who seemed to recoil a bit from the look. Zoro pressed.

“What the hell are you up to? I hope you are not planning to do something stupid.”

The cook frowned and turned away, not meeting Zoro’s gaze. The gesture was very suspicious. However, the idiot still refused to say anything.

Now it was Zoro’s turn to sigh in exasperation. If the idiot refused to say anything, so be it.

“Whatever. As long as you don’t cause trouble to anyone on this ship, blockhead.”

That startled the cook. His gaze snapped up, face drawn in genuine trepidation. The reply came out of him in a hurry as the possibility had never crossed his mind.

“Of course not. I was just listening…”

Realizing what he was saying, the cook snapped his mouth shut mid-sentence. Zoro wouldn’t let him off, though.

“Listening?”

The cook thinned his lips, seemingly self-conscious. He turned his eyes away again, and repeated stubbornly.

“Yes. Listening.”

“What’s your deal!? Are you trying to get on my nerves.”

“…”

The cook wouldn’t budge.

“Are all those loose screws coming off in your head now? It’s just water everywhere you turn to. What the hell are you listening to?”

Realizing that Zoro wouldn’t let him off easily without saying something, the cook started to hesitate. He seemed to be debating with himself whether to give an explanation or just cut out. In the end, he mumbled, not meeting Zoro’s eyes.

“Close your eyes.”

“Huh?”

Zoro couldn’t have heard that right.

“Close your eyes and try to see for yourself, moron.”

For lack of any other argument, Zoro reluctantly did as instructed. He squeezed his eyes shut, focusing on the tinies sounds and searching around with his ears. All he could hear was the murmur of the waves surrounding them, the occasional swish of the breeze, the distant whiff of laughter and conversation from other parts of the ship…

“What am I listening to?”

Zoro gritted out, trying to keep his eyes from snapping open and listened harder. All he could hear was still those same sounds. Sounds without significance, without rapport.

“…”

He waited, but there was no response. Now he started to feel really dumb for going along.

Before he could shout at the cook, however, his senses honed in on something. First he registered the warmth of the person next to him, before slowly becoming hyperaware of the soft breathing of the cook. If he concentrated, he could almost hear the steady thrum of his heartbeat.

“Listen carefully…Do you hear it?”

The cook whispered, as if afraid to disturb whatever sound he was listening to. Zoro strained his ears. Still, he heard nothing.

“The sound of the ocean…”

The final whisper of the cook’s lingered. When Zoro opened his eyes, the cook was gone. The idiot had been as silent as the night.

The mist closed in around him in a curtain of opaque humidity. The rays of the bright moon penetrated through the heavy mist in places, but the sea was just as thick and immutable as ever. Zoro felt so isolated as he stood there by himself in the middle of the deck, gaze turned towards the water.

Was something lurking just underneath the surface? Was the cook listening to detect any sound of danger? Or could it be…that the idiot was hiding something? He seemed honest enough when he denied that accusation about putting the crew in danger. Besides, he was smiling to himself when Zoro found him. A smile Zoro had yet to put a description to. Zoro stared hard, trying to look into the water. Still, he didn’t see nor hear anything unusual.

It was then that Zoro noticed some dark feathers scattered on the planks where the cook had stood. He didn’t take it to heart, and dismissed them simply as something to clean up later.

If only he had paid them any heed…

Somehow, the cook seemed to be faring worse. On top of always being lost in his own world, he was languid when he moved about, as if he would fall to pieces if he weren’t careful.

As always, the cook sat with them at the table at each meal. He ate with an appetite, which was unusual for him. It was as if his body was trying to absorb as much nutrition as possible, but Zoro could be overthinking it. The cook had been on his mind a lot, much to Zoro’s utter annoyance.

Clink.

Zoro looked up to see the cook, who was sitting across from him, absentmindedly put his fork against the rim of his plate, the bite of meat still stabbed to it. His mind seemed to be elsewhere, something that happened at lot these past few days. He had somehow abandoned his meal in the middle of his daydreaming.

By reflexes alone, Zoro thrusted his glass straight out in front of him. It immediately collided with Luffy’s face, who had extended his neck out to steal the steak from the cook’s nearly finished plate.

“Ouch! That hurt, Zoro!”

Their captain complained. Just like Zoro, he had to have noticed that the cook had stopped eating, and was going for the remaining food. Zoro just frowned at him and shook his head. Still determined to have as much meat as was available, however, Luffy pouted and turned to the cook.

“Sanji, are you done? Can I have the rest of your food?”

The cook seemed to have been shaken out of his reverie by the direct question. He looked down at his plate. More than half of the food was gone, leaving only a small portion of meat. To Zoro’s downright exasperation, the cook obediently pushed his nearly empty plate towards Luffy.

“Please help me finish it, Captain.”

Luffy beamed and dug into the food that the cook didn’t finish. Zoro couldn’t hold back his annoyed sigh.

Nami laughed and picked up her glass of orange juice.

“Luffy’s always super hungry whenever meat’s on the menu.”

“Well, you know Luffy. Meat is his philosophy.”

Usopp added good-naturedly and thrusted out his glass as if to toast to that.

“Come to think of it… we have only been having meat recently?”

Nami voiced her observation. The cook perked up a little at Nami’s comment and answered animatedly.

“You’re right~ Nami-san! That’s because this is the season. I’ll try to include other ingredients when they are available, though!”

Zoro knew there were things like season for crab…season for shellfish, etc. But season for meat? Is there a specific time where beef tasted better than the rest of the year? The doubt must have shown on his face.

“By the way, Sanji-kun, are you alright? You seem a little out of it recently.”

The witch changed the subject as she studied the cook, taking in his pale countenance. Even she started to notice the change in him.

“Oh~ how can I be anything but upbeat when Nami-san is always thinking about me?”

The cook answered with the usual flirt and wriggled happily. The sea witch sighed in resignation at the response. However, Robin, who was sitting next to her became ponderous. Her eyes grew sharp as she asked conversationally.

“Have those birds been giving you any trouble, Cook-san?”

Birds…? Aside from the delivery seagull, Zoro didn’t remember seeing any bird since they had put that island behind them. The cook seems to know what they were talking about, though, as he promptly offered up the response.

“Not at all! I refuse to let anything disturb Robin-chan and Nami-san’s beauty sleep, so I made sure to beat them off as soon as I lay my eyes on the first one of them!”

As he said that, his gaze wandered absentmindedly to Zoro. Their eyes met, and the cook checked himself. Once his eyes fell to the empty glass in Zoro’s hand, however, his face softened. When he took the glass out of Zoro’s hand, their fingers brushed slightly.

As the cook got up to refill Zoro’s drink, a single black feather fluttered out of his clothes. Zoro caught a glimpse of it, but couldn’t remember where he had seen it before.

Zoro found the cook in the crow’s nest at middle watch. As he made his way up the rigging, he heard a fluttering of wings. Black, avian shapes moved about on top of the mast. They were so dark that they seemed to absorb even the shiny moonlight. Zoro couldn’t catch a good look of them before they took flight and disappeared into the darkness.

Robin did mention that they were troubled by birds, but what could they possibly be?

The cook was rolling down the sleeves of his prissy dark shirt and putting on his suit jacket. His clothes seemed to blend into the darkness of the night.

In the bright light of the moon, the cook seemed unhealthily gaunt. His eyes and cheek had sunken overnight, and he had this feverish flush about him. The cook’s bloodless lips were parted slightly as he was lost in his own mind. When Zoro hoisted himself up onto the platform, the cook startled and turned around. His blue eyes were strangely moist as he regarded Zoro uncomprehendingly for a second. There was the smallest trace of smile of his face again, but it quickly disappeared once he registered Zoro’s presence. Suddenly, he wobbled and had to reach out to grab onto the side of the crow’s nest to steady himself.

“Oi, are you alright!?”

Zoro’s hand shot out to try to steady him, but the cook brushed it off. The cook took a few shaky breaths to centre himself, before responding defensively.

“Did you need something, Marimo?”

Zoro had come to check on him, though he would never admit it out loud. He was sure that the others had also noticed that something was going on with the cook, but chose to let him to tell them on his own terms. Somehow that thought didn’t sit well with Zoro. It was frustrating, and Zoro couldn’t help himself from coming to make sure.

He didn’t like what he was seeing. At all.

He took a deep breath and said.

“Just go down and rest.”

The look the cook gave him was full of exasperation, but the weight of it was somehow lost with how unsteady he was on his feet. He explained calmly, as if he was dealing with an incredibly dull child.

“Can’t you see I’m on watch?”

“Can’t keep watch if you are toppling over.”

That seemed to hit a sore spot, and the cook suddenly stepped into Zoro’s space, confrontational.

“I’m keeping watch. Get _lost_.”

Zoro still stood his ground. Suddenly, the Going Merry was tossed up on a particularly bumpy tide and the cook lost his balance. Zoro’s hands shot out to catch him easily. As he sat the cook down, Zoro caught a whiff of a familiar tang. He quickly dismissed it as he propped the idiot up against the side of the crow’s nest. The cook drew his knees towards himself and pressed his forehead into them as if to ride out a spell of dizziness.

“…shit.”

“I’ll keep double watch.”

That was what Zoro had intended to offer when he came up to the crow’s nest in the first place. The cook looked so worn out and defeated, and Zoro had rarely seen him in such a bad shape. Yet, the cook gritted out stubbornly even as he kept his eyes pressed to his knees.

“Don’t…be stupid. I don’t need you to cover for me.”

That got on Zoro’s nerves. How could the moron say that when he could barely stay on his feet. There had to be a limit to how much this idiot insisted on being unreasonable. Zoro told himself that he was angry because what the cook was doing was endangering the crew. If he kept up with whatever bullshit this was, Zoro had a feeling that they would get in trouble at some point.

Zoro coldly pulled the cook by the hair and forced him to look up. The cook couldn’t suppress the wince as his neck was arched back by Zoro’s grip on his hair. Zoro had intended to shout at him for being selfish, but what actually came out was:

“Why don’t you tell us what the hell is wrong with you!? When are you going to get it into that thick head of yours to ask for help when you need it!”

Face scrunched up, the cook cracked his eyes open but didn’t try to get away. He lifted his chin and regarded Zoro with as much defiance as he could muster in his currently pitiful state.

“Leave me alone and mind your own damn business!”

White-hot fury blossomed inside Zoro’s chest, almost suffocating him. Zoro’s fist swung forward on its own, even before he realized what he was doing. The cook’s eyes widen in alarm. He looked almost _terrified_.

Unexplainably, the sight checked Zoro’s punch. Zoro could feel his anger immediately dissipate, only to be replaced by something even more smothering. Zoro couldn’t get enough air in his lungs and suddenly he was hyperventilating. His fist stopped short of colliding with the cook’s clenched jaws.

Zoro let his arm dropped and shoved the cook away. He couldn’t place the emotion he was currently experiencing and was growing more and more confused. Why did it suddenly get so hard to breathe? Something inside chest constricted painfully, but he couldn’t identify the source of the pain.

Taking one last look at the cowering form, Zoro flung himself out of the crow’s nest, bypassing the rigging and landing heavily on deck.

He told himself that what he was doing was not running away. No, it wasn’t.

“Look, guys, that’s Dragonfly Barracudas!”

Eyes bright with excitement, Chopper pointed at the winged fish which was leaping out of the ocean into the air to the starboard. The fish had large, long body with shiny scales. Three pairs of translucent wings lined their length, which the creatures used to propel itself out of the water. Luffy and Usopp were perching on the ship’s side, shouting animatedly into the ocean.

“Where? Where?”

“There? See? They’re leaping out of the water!”

“I’ve never seen the real thing before!”

Chopper was clapping excitedly. Usopp thrusted out his chest, pointed to himself and boasted.

“You’re so naive, Chopper-kun. Captain Usopp’s seen plenty of those where he came from! It was not so rare around those parts, after all!”

“Really!? That’s so amazing!!!”

Eyes as round as eggs, Chopper seemed awestruck at Long Nose’s claim. Zoro could tell that Usopp was clearly lying, but didn’t see any point in calling him out on it. He himself was leaning against the ship’s side, looking into the sea. Zoro had never seen a Dragonfly Barracuda either, but he could tell that they were a rare species. For some reason, the part of the ocean they were travelling on were teeming with a multitude of marine life.

Just beneath the surface, a shadow loomed in the depth of the ocean. Even through the barrier of water, they could see the colourful lights refracting off of its scales, creating a beautiful, waving pattern along the side of the Going Merry.

“Wow, look at that!”

“A Rainbow Hammerhead! It’s soooooo big!!!”

The shark didn’t hang around and the rainbow soon disappeared. In its place they saw a school of South Blue snapper, which came up so close to the ship they could almost count out individual fish. The sight was utterly mesmerising. It was as if they had stumbled upon a horde of nautical treasures.

“Luffy, what’s that!?”

Chopper pointed to the blurred, equine shape of something that was weaving its way about just out of sight. From what they could tell of the glimpse, it was easily the size of a small ship. Luffy and Usopp thrusted their heads out to get a better look, and the latter jumped.

“Could that be…a Horse Whale!?”

Luffy shouted excitedly.

“What, really!?”

Even Zoro had heard of Horse Whales, even if he hadn’t seen one. Seamen told of deadly encounters with the predator, which was said to be one of the most dangerous species of the depth. They targeted guileless ships, knocking them over as they galloped through the water. Horse Whales were one of sailors’ worst fears.

But obviously not the Straw Hat’s. While Usopp started shaking, Chopper grabbed his hand and dragged him away.

“Let’s go get Nami and Robin! They would’t wanna miss this!”

“Are…Are you sure, Chopper-kun?”

“Certainly. Let’s go!”

While Usopp and Chopper went away in search of the girls, leaving Zoro alone with their chattering captain.

“Look, look, Zoro! The snappers are following us!”

While Luffy chatted away about the fish, Zoro tuned him out and let his mind wander. Somehow, looking into the ocean like this reminded him of a few days before, where he found the cook engaged in the same activity. Could he have been looking at the fish too? He had said then that he had been listening to the ocean, but what was there to listen to? Was there something he was conscious of that escaped the rest of them?

The object of his pondering had locked himself up in the galley. Breakfast had been a tense affair as either of them refused to acknowledge the other. If anyone had noticed the tension, nobody said anything. Everyone on this ship was probably used to the random intervals during which the two of them went about their business without speaking to each other.

However, Zoro still found himself observing the cook over breakfast. He did not seem to be doing worse, but he didn’t seem to be doing better either. He spoke little, but finished his all of his food distractedly. In fact, he was so out of it that Nami had to touch his arm to call his attention when she asked him a question. And the girls had never _had to_ call his attention before, what with how focused he normally was when it came to them.

Zoro started to seriously consider the possibility that the cook had taken ill. Sailors died at sea because of disease and illness all the time. The cause of death was a perpetual threat to seamen. When a ship went on a long stretch of voyage, people simply had no access to equipment and medicine. A ship couldn’t just stop in the middle of the sea when a member of the crew required an operation. Even the best doctor couldn’t save a dying man if he did not have the necessary supply.

Should have have gotten Chopper involved?

“You know, you and Sanji better make up soon, Zoro!”

Luffy’s sudden words snapped him out of his mulling. Zoro turned his gaze on his captain and bit out defensively.

“Hey, he was the one being an asshole, not me.”

Luffy put his chin between his fingers and scrunched his face up in concentration. The pose was so comical Zoro couldn’t take him seriously. After a heartbeat, the captain snapped his fingers and said with a broad grin.

“He’s probably thinking the same thing, you know?”

“What?”

Zoro did not understand what he was getting at. Luffy’s smile widened and explained as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

“Sanji is probably thinking that you are being an asshole too!”

“He’s clearly the asshole! I only —”

As Zoro made to deny that statement, words just escaped him. There was just no question about him being in the wrong. But somehow, he couldn’t explain himself. What was he trying to achieve by confronting the cook? Was he simply trying to pick a fight with the other? Was he really trying to ensure the safety of the crew? Was he…

“I have no idea what you guys are fighting about, but you probably have your own reasons, right, Zoro?”

Luffy turned back to the ocean and continued to watch the fish. For once, Zoro was uncertain. It was a foreign feeling. He was usually so sure of himself, but now he did not even understand the headspace he found himself in. Their captain continued levelly.

“Sanji has been acting weird recently, but I’m sure he had his reasons, too.”

Luffy turned back to him with that wide grin again.

“And knowing both of you, I have a feeling that your reasons might be more similar than you think!”

“…That can’t be.”

Zoro denied weakly, but there was no weight behind his words. His first instinct was to question the cook’s actions, but he was starting to look at it differently once he stopped to consider Luffy’s suggestion. Maybe their captain did have a point. The cook just kept quiet and never told him what was really going on, so Zoro just came to his own conclusions. In fact, he had no idea what the guy was trying to do. Had Zoro been too quick to assume the worst?

His train of thought was interrupted when Chopper announced their return.

“We’re back! Is that Horse Whale still around?”

Usopp and Chopper came back with only Robin in tow, having never managed to find Nami. Seeing Zoro’s expression, Usopp paled.

“W… why the long face, Zoro? Is that really a Horse Whale!?”

Zoro didn’t realize that he was making a face until Usopp pointed it out. He wiped the expression off his face and stared blankly back into the ocean. The fish that surrounded them shifted and shimmered. It was as if their ship were threading among a proliferous coral reef underwater.

Robin observed him and let slip a mysterious smile.

“Look, Robin! Do you think that was a Horse Whale?”

Chopper showed the historian the vague form that had been meandering underwater, just below the surface. They couldn’t catch a good glimpse of it. Robin peered into the sea and her expression shifted minutely, before humouring their doctor with an answer.

“That’s possible, Doctor-san. We’ll be able to tell for sure if only he would come closer to the surface.”

Chopper called towards the ocean, trying to communicate with the blurred shape.

“Whale-saaaaaan…. please show yourself! We would like to meet you!”

Luffy joined in.

“Pleas come oooout!”

“No…not really!”

Usopp murmured, breaking into a sweat. The creature ignored the them and disappeared back into the depth. Luffy and Chopper stared after it in disappointment.

“Oh. He’s gone.”

Usopp wiped his face in relief. He looked again to make sure that the fish was really gone. Studying the sea, the sniper verbalized what everyone was thinking.

“By the way, isn’t the population unusually high around these parts?”

Robin’s eyes grew sharp. She seemed ponderous, before answering with a deep voice.

“It’s probably because of the absence of natural predators.”

Predators, huh? Sailing the ocean, they came across hunting grounds and stumbled upon creatures engaging in a life or dead match all the time. Most of the time it was two sea-kings trying to bite off each other’s head. That could be troublesome for the ship, if they happened to be within their reach. Aside from being a general disturbance to navigation, these hunters could turn its interest onto them and decided that they were the better prey. Zoro guessed the lack of predators just meant a little bit of peaceful sailing for the ship.

“Wouldn’t you like to try some of those snappers, Luffy? They look so yummy.”

Usopp bent down and peered at the school of fish swimming in parallel to their starboard. Luffy only chuckled. Their captain answered enigmatically before walking off.

“I wouldn’t mind! But Sanji probably wouldn’t want to cook them. Now now, at least.”

The night, Zoro finished his training later than usual. He had been thinking about Luffy’s words, trying to make sense of the situation. No matter how many times he went over his interactions with the cook, he just couldn’t understand his own feeling. Why did he react the way he did? What exactly was the meaning of the suffocating emotion he was experiencing at the moment, even when they hadn’t said a word to each other since the night before?

When he snapped out of his thought, it was already half way into middle watch. That was the cook’s assignment for the voyage.

When Zoro made his way from the forecastle towards the hatch, he noticed some movement by the galley. His eyes sought into the darkness, and eventually picked out a human form. It was actually the cook in his dark clothes.

The curtain of tropical mist fell about the deck. The moon was no longer the full moon of last week, the waning crescent casting a pale light on to the Going Merry. Zoro wouldn’t have detected the cook’s presence if not for his sickly pallid skin.

The cook was leaning heavily against the railing, as if he could barely hold himself up without support. An unlit cigarette dangled between his lips. Just like all those nights ago, he had his eyes closed as he turned his head towards the ocean. The dark, rippling water stretched out in front of him.

As Zoro watched, the cook’s thin lips turned up into something close to a smile. His whole was was relaxed while his head lolled tiredly to the side. He was showing that smile again.

Out of nowhere, the word came to Zoro. Romance and poetry was bullshit to him, but somehow that expression called to mind a description that he had heard the women in his native village used all those years back. It was the word they used when they were talking about a man and a woman. They had used to word _loving_.

The cook was offering a _loving_ smile to the ocean.

Leaning there with his eyes closed, the cook looked as if he was listening to a tale from the ocean. Maybe he did _hear_ something from the waves? Could the expanse of dark water be whispering to him, telling him of their loves and lies, of dangers and promises?

The cook’s smile told of a secret he shared with the blue depth. A secret Zoro was not part of. The truth of which had been barred from Zoro. Mere feet separated him from the cook, but at the moment, he seemed to be somewhere just out of Zoro’s reach.

That notion made Zoro’s lungs constricted. The suffocating feeling returned, and Zoro gripped his own hair as his chest ached without reason.

He didn’t know how long he stood there, staring at the cook’s smile, trying to make sense of his own feeling. He was still wracking his brain to understand why the cook had such effect on him, when the dark figure finally roused. The cook perked up, cast his gaze around the expanse of the sky as if searching for something. When only the dark, misty sky stared back at him, he turned around and headed towards to kitchens. He was staggering from side to side, and had to grab onto the frame of the galley door to steady himself.

When the cook had finally disappeared inside, Zoro’s feet took him to the place that the other had just vacated. Once Zoro came to stand at the exact same spot, he turned his gaze towards the sea. He studied the scene in front of him, taking in the dark ocean that looked just the way it had all these times they had been sailing. The low mist hanging about the ship did not offer up any answer to the question unknown to himself.

_“Listen…”_

The cook’s words came back to him, and Zoro closed his eyes. He opened his ears and sharpened his senses to detect the tiniest sounds and the minutest presence. He had stood like this the other day, dumbly listening to the ocean without any success.

A torrent of information flooded Zoro’s senses now that he had his eyes closed and his focus on his surrounding. The sea in the wee hours of the night was more incredibly loud. Gone was the human sounds as the rest of the crew lost themselves in slumber. Instead, the sounds of the ocean crashing against the hull, the froth breaking off the top of the waves became all the more pronounced. The occasional marine life jumped out of the water and created a faraway splash as it fell back underneath. As the ship glided nimbly towards the next island, its planks and seams groaned in labour. Zoro wouldn’t be exaggerating to claim that he almost heard the _mist_ falling from the air.

As he listened, Zoro also picked up the sound of his own breathing. The in-drawing and the exhaling of air through his nose. He also heard the sound of his own pulse beating in his ears. All those sounds were the same ones he had heard when he had attempted to listen to the ocean with the cook by his side.

A memory suddenly surged to the forefront of his mind, ever so inconsequential and unbidden. It was the ghost of the presence beside him. He had heard the cook’s soft breathing and felt his warmth as they had stood facing the sea shoulder to shoulder.

Zoro’s heart missed a beat and picked up its rhythm, until all he could hear was the sound of his own heavy breathing.

He might not have a insight into the cook’s secret exchange with the ocean, but he thought he understood something about himself now.

Zoro opened his eyes slowly and was met with the formidable sight of the sea. He held on to his newfound understanding and thought about what to do with it.

He let his gaze wander as he lost himself in thought. His eyes swept over some dark spots on the wood of the railing, before moving on to the ripples of the water. He swept his eyes back to them again as a thought occurred to him that they looked uncannily like drops of blood.

In fact, they could very well be. The liquid was still wet as Zoro ran his fingers over the spot. He brought it close to inspect, and confirmed that yes, this was indeed someone’s blood.

It was where the cook had rested his arms when he had leaned against the railing earlier. Zoro was hit with a realization that the cook was bleeding just now.

Before he knew what he was doing, his feet had already carried him instantaneously to the galley’s door, behind which the cook had disappeared to. His booming footstep resounded through the sleeping ship. He jerked the door open, dislodging the hinges with the force.

The inside of the galley was unlit, but Zoro could still make out the dark form of the cook. He was slumped on the kitchen table, his head resting on one arm while the other dangled limply by his side. Relief washed over Zoro immediately. As he made his way towards the cook, he couldn’t hold back a sigh.

“That’s why I told you to let me cover the watch…”

Zoro grumbled to himself in exasperation. He had intended to bring the cook back down to the cabin, but as he approached the prone form, his sharp sense told him that something was not right. Zoro’s hand flew to the switch, and light instantly flooded the small kitchen.

Fresh blood was steadily dripping from the limp arm towards the floor. The pool of red liquid was slowly expanding when the next drop of blood joined its predecessor on the tile. Zoro’s relief had been momentary as dread immediately took its place. He could feel his blood turn cold in his veins.

“Oi, Cook!”

Zoro rushed to the cook’s side. Grabbing him by the shoulders, Zoro made to turn him over, but the cook’s body tumbled limply towards the floor. Zoro just barely managed to catch him in his surprise. He lowered him down, arranging him so that he was lying on his back.

The cook’s complexion was ashen. His sharp nose and cheekbones created a shadow upon his thin face. There was a sheen of sweat on his skin and he was breathing with difficulty. Zoro tried to wake him by calling him and tapping on his cheek, but no matter what he did, the cook still wouldn’t rouse.

“Idiot, wake up!”

Fear gripped Zoro. He had initially thought that the cook had merely fallen asleep on his watch, but it slowly became clear to Zoro that the cook had _fainted_.

“Cook! Open your eyes!”

Zoro continued to call out to him. He hastily ripped the jacket off of the cook in a desperate attempt to help him breathe easier. He went on to undo the first few buttons of his shirt and loosen his belt. The cook’s skin was cold and clammy to the touch, Zoro noted with no small amount of alarm.

In his haste to revive the cook, Zoro hand brushed over his bleeding arm. Zoro seized him by the wrist and almost tore the sleeve open. The slender arm bore an incision mark a few inches above the wrist, out of which fat droplets of blood trickled incessantly. What caused the deadly fear to mount in Zoro, however, was the _other_ marks marring the smooth skin.

Twin puncture wounds the size of peppercorns decorated his lower arm. They ran along the inner and outer sides in pairs, going all the way up to his elbows, and Zoro counted at least half a dozen marks on this arm alone. He quickly grabbed the cook’s other arm and found the same marks everywhere.

He brushed his finger over one of them and could tell that the wound was still fresh, although no blood came out. The skin around it was pink and tender to the touch. Some of the wounds looked more severe than the others, as if the same spots had been pierced over and over, never allowing the flesh to heal completely. The worst of them had to be the pair of gaping holes right around the cook’s left wrist.

What could have caused such wounds? To Zoro’s knowledge, it couldn’t have been anything on the ship. Zoro quickly disregard the possibility that the cook had been hurting himself. Idiot would never harm his own precious arms. Had he been injured in a fight, then? But they hadn’t been in a fight since the last island, and the wound still looked fresh enough that the cook could have received them _yesterday_.

As Zoro was examining his arms, the cook gave a muffled cry and was slowly coming back to himself. Zoro put his arm around his shoulders to help him up. The cook’s neck lolled bonelessly into the crook of Zoro’s neck as he blinked open his bleary eyes.

“Cook!”

“Urgh…”

Groaning again, the cook took in his dishevelled state and the fact that he was lying on the floor. Confused, he brought a hand up to his face and flinched at the pain.

“Here, drink.”

Zoro grabbed the nearest bottle, only stopping to check that it was consumable before offering it the other. The cook took small sips from the bottle. He spluttered a little, and Zoro held him as he struggled to fight down a coughing fit. His pale lips were stained dark red with cooking wine. When it had passed, the cook opened his eyes and became aware of Zoro. He started to struggle.

“Argh, you…!”

“Enough of that crap. Tell me what happened.”

Despite his harsh words, Zoro tightened his hold and helped the cook to sit up. Making sure that the other would not pitch over, Zoro kept an arm around his waist. Idiot looked like he should stay in bed for the next three days.

“…”

When the cook remained stubbornly silent, Zoro pressed.

“Well!?”

The cook slumped into Zoro’s arm in defeat. What came out of his lips, however, really tested Zoro’s patience.

“What did I tell you, shitty swordsman? Just mind your own…”  
  
“Don’t you fucking finish that sentence.”

Zoro’s grip on the cook’s waist became bruising. Zoro wouldn’t have any more of his bullshit. He wouldn’t let the idiot get away until he had dragged the truth out of him. This had gone on for long enough. He reached out to pick up the cook’s limp arm and displayed the marked skin in all its brutal glory.

“What the fuck are these wounds!? How did you get them?”

Zoro shook the cook’s arm in emphasis. The idiot pursed his lips, resolutely avoiding Zoro’s gaze. Words gushed out of Zoro in an unstoppable torrent. Words that he had been bottling up for long enough.

“You _fainted_ in the middle of the night, for fuck’s sake! What if I hadn’t found your sorry ass!? What if the sea witch came into the kitchen in the morning and discovered your dead body instead. What would have happened then!?”

“Urgh…”

The possibility that Nami could have been the one to find him in his current state seemed to guilt-trip the cook into admission. He weakly pulled at the arm in Zoro’s grasp. Zoro took the hint and let go of his wrist. Finally, the cook let out a defeated sigh and opened his mouth.

“Don’t be stupid. I wouldn’t die from some shitty blood loss…”

There was the tiniest sound outside. The cook immediately tensed up, straining his ears to pick out the source. Zoro ignored it and repeated his question.

“But how did you get those wounds?”

The interrogation fell on deaf ear as the cook’s focus was directed towards the outside. He didn’t seem to have heard Zoro.

There came a sound of wings flapping.

“Shit…the birds!”

Suddenly, the cook shot up with unexpected strength and bolted out of the galley.

“Oi, where do you think you are you going!?”

Zoro shot after him. As he stepped over the threshold, he was frozen on spot. Nothing could have prepared him for the sight that awaited. The cook was standing at the forecastle, both arms outstretched. Inky, aviary forms bustled about him in a storm of feathers. Taking in the shape of the wings and the hooked bills, Zoro realized that they were cormorants. There were about a dozen of them, each one the size of a regular dog, its wingspan almost wider than the cook was tall.

“Wait!”

As Zoro dashed towards the cook, the one of the birds opened its bill and revealed two deadly rows of fangs. They looked like canine teeth and made such a sinister sight inside the beak of a bird. Before Zoro could reach the cook, the cormorant locked its bill onto the cook’s arm and drove its fangs all the way in. The fangs pierced into the holes they had left last night, going straight through the artery. They were long enough that the points of the upper and lower pairs could easily meet through the cook’s slim arm. Fresh blood welled out, only to be lapped up hungrily by a red tongue. As if that was the signal, the rest of the birds rained down on the cook. Their beaks latched on to the skin available and their fangs went straight into the existing bite marks. The sight alone was painful enough to look at, and Zoro could see the cook flinch bodily to endure the brutal feeding.

“Son of a bitch!”

Zoro was there the next second, swords unsheathed in both hands, ready to cut the stupid birds into shreds.

How long had the cook been attacked by these fucking bird? Had this been going on every night? For the look of the wounds, Zoro could tell that that was definitely the case.

“No, Zoro!!!”

As Zoro brought his swords down, the cook’s panicked shout stopped his hands before his blades could connect.

The cook stumbled away from Zoro, trying to put himself between Zoro and the birds. Zoro snapped and advanced with his swords pointed at the creatures.

“What the hell are you doing!?”

“Don’t hurt them! They are just blood cormorants… Once they’re satisfied, they’ll leave soon enough!”

Zoro had heard of the species. They were deadly predators that preyed upon the sea. They could easily take down preys several times their size and fed exclusively on blood. Because of their black feathers, they were regarded as bad omen and heralds of death.

“The fuck’s wrong with you!? Can’t you see they’re having a fucking _feast_!”

As the birds continued to drink up his blood, the cook’s knees buckled. Still, fighting against the pain with sheer determination, the idiot said between his teeth.

“That was my intention…! Please…I just wanted to feed them!”

Those words stopped Zoro in his track. The cook had not been assaulted by the birds, but was offering himself to them? He was probably up waiting for them tonight, trying to attract them with the scent of his blood. As Zoro met the idiot’s hazy gaze, he could tell that the cook meant what he said.

However, he couldn’t let this go on for any longer. At this rate, the birds would finish off the cook in no time. Thinking quickly, Zoro jumped into action.

“In that case, let them suck on something else, then!”

Sheathing his swords, Zoro flipped the hilts around and used them to beat those bloodsuckers away. Screeching, the birds let go of the cook flew up in a whirlwind of dark, fluttering wings. Still not satisfied with the feeding, they attempted to dive for the cook again. Grabbing and shielding him with his body, Zoro madly swung his sheathed swords at the cormorants. The cook tried to stop him, but Zoro wouldn’t have none of it.

“No!!! Don’t do that, or they will…!”

The cook’s speech cut off abruptly as the birds gave a piercing cry. The sound cut shrilly through the silence of the misty night. Realizing that their attempt had been ineffective, the small gulp of cormorants seemed to have given up and shot towards the ocean. Zoro held his swords in front of them, ready to attack if necessary, never dropping his guard. He wouldn’t relax until he was sure that they would not be coming back.

“Shit!!!”

Zoro’s gaze snapped to the cook at his alarmed growl. Hugging his wounded arms to himself, the idiot wobbled to the side of the ship. His legs gave out, but Zoro caught him and half carried him in the direction of the sea.

The stood together, watching as the cormorants circled above a patch of water. The night was dark and partially obscured by the mist, but they could still make out the individual shapes of the birds. Suddenly, the cormorants gave an ear splitting screech and plunged underwater in a swoop.

“Damn it!!!”

The cook gripped the wood and chewed his lips.

For a few seconds, the sea was completely still. Zoro watched as the cook grew more and more anxious the longer the birds stayed submerged.

“Come on…!”

“What…”

Zoro was about to ask for an explanation when suddenly, the ocean exploded with a great boom, sending forth a massive splash of seawater. The two of them were immediately drenched under the splay. Zoro wiped his eyes and looked out into the sea. The cook cursed.

“Shit…”

There in the middle of the ocean stood a giant sea-king. Its form was similar to that of a giant seahorse, with curved spine and trumpet snout. The monster stood a good ten meter tall above the water and Zoro’s first thought was that it was such a spectacular creature. Looking closely, however, he realized that it wasn’t a single being, but an aggregation of different marine life. He could see the multitude of South Blue snappers that the made up the body and the Rainbow Sharks that formed the fins. A dozen of other species that he couldn’t identify combined together into its the spines and gills.

There at the foremost part of the head sat the fearsome Horse Whale. The creature was heavily built, and a mane of hair ran from the middle of its forehead towards its tail. Its whale body was slick and scaleless. Dark eyes were looking out of its equine head at the birds that circled around its extended body.

The aggregation moved as one and shot out of the bird’s flight. Turning its body around, the seahorse monster positioned itself so that the Horse Whale could get a good shot with the water gun from its longish mouth. One after another, the birds fell into the sea. Nonetheless, blood cormorants were fierce hunters. An assembly of prey was prey all the same. Spreading their giant wings, they gave a shrill cry and dived at the monster, bills open and fangs extended. Those that have fallen into the sea picked themselves up and dug its fangs into the nearest fish, their pointed fangs breaking through the scales and piercing the flesh.

“The fish!”

Zoro heard the cook cried in desperation. He was transfixed at scene of the fight in front of them.

So that was it. The cook hadn’t been trying to save the birds. He had allowed them to feed from him because he was trying to protect those fish. By offering food to the predators, the preys were kept safe.

Now that the birds couldn’t get to the cook, they were turning back towards their natural source of diet.

The idiot gripped the railing and attempted to hoist himself overboard.

“What do you think you are you doing, moron!?”

“I’ve got to stop them! It’s pointless for them to clash!!!”

The cook bit out in desperation. His body had been pushed to the limit, and he would only be drowning himself at this point. Zoro swept his eyes over him and let out a heavy breath. He couldn’t believe it. The idiot was trying to help some stupid fish when he himself could barely stay on his feet.

“Stupid…”

Zoro shut his eyes and made his decision. Tonight, he had come to realized something. The cook might be a big idiot who thought that saving some fish took priority over himself. He had been enduring those fangs silently in the hope that those shitty birds would eventually go away.

He might be an idiot, but this idiot was someone important to Zoro.

Quickly coming up with a plan, Zoro launched himself into action. He grabbed the cook by the waist and threw him bodily back onto deck. The cook hit the plank with an undignified _ack_ and couldn’t get up again.

“Stay put.”

“Zoro!!!”

The cook shouted after him, the desperation in his voice clear across the sky. Zoro kicked off the floorboard to propel himself, lunging head first at the sea-king, two swords unsheathed. Blood cormorants screeched around Zoro, alarmed that he was going to take away their prey. Zoro ignored them and turned to face the aggregation of fish.

The cook couldn’t put himself on the platter if there was nothing left to protect.

“Don’t do it…Zoro!!!”

Seeing his advance, the monster turned to aim a torrent of water at Zoro, but he easily swept to the side and evaded it. Landing on the body of the seahorse, Zoro looked up and aimed at its head. He pushed off from its body, swords poised at the ready. Reaching the Horse Whale, he brought his swords down and slashed it out of the aggregated fish.

It fell into the sea with a loud splash, before floating back up a few seconds later, capsized.

Losing the helm, the monster simply started to disintegrate. The sharks jumped singly back into the ocean in loud splatters, while the barracudas slithered down in a school. The multitude of fish fell back into the ocean in swift splashes, and in a few seconds, the giant monster had disappeared back into the sea.

“Zoro!”

Zoro plopped along underneath, but quickly broke the surface and sidestroked towards the ship. When he reached the hull, the cook had already secured and dropped the ladder for him. Looking back into the ocean, he saw that the cormorants had already rained down on the felled Horse Whale and were feasting happily on it. That whale should last them the whole week.

He grabbed the rope and quickly pulled himself onto deck.

“You shitty swordsman!”

Once hit feet touched the floorboard, the cook lunged at him. As he attempted to swing a kick at Zoro’s face, however, the idiot ended up losing balance and pitched forward to the ground. Having broken his fall several times already during the course of the week, Zoro let him free fall for a change. The cook’s body hit the floor heavily, the impact sending him rolling onto his back.

“Oww…”

“Serves you right for being such a dimwit.”

Zoro crouched down next to him and gave him a once over. Drenched with seawater and breathing heavily, the cook was downright anaemic. The puncture wounds on his arms had stopped bleeding, but a shiver wracked his body as he tried unsuccessfully to move. The past week was visibly taking its toll on him. Still, the idiot cracked his eyes open and glared at Zoro murderously.

“Who…said you could interfere!”

“How could I not!?”

“You…!”

“Just how dumb can you get, Ero-cook!? Why did you allow this to happen!? They were just fish… they can fuck off!”

Zoro grabbed his chin and forced him to look him in the eyes as he said those words. No more running away now. Not him, nor the cook. The idiot struggled weakly, but met his gaze with defiance.

“I couldn’t"

“Why the fuck not!?”

“I couldn’t. Those cormorants would have devoured those fish!”

“Who fucking cares about that!?”

The cook regarded him with a challenge. The pool of his dark blue eyes sucked Zoro in, and he lost himself in the depth so similar to the sea around them. The cook explained in a whisper, all the fight had gone out of him.

“Haven’t you noticed? The ocean is heavily pregnant…”

Everything seemed to fall in to place all at once.

Aggregations only occurred when fish got ready to give birth. Heavy with eggs, the fish gathered together to drive off predators. That was the reason why the tropical waters they were threading on were exploding with marine life. Strength in numbers and all that.

“Stupid cook…”

Robin had said that the fish population was extraordinarily dense because of the absence of their natural predators. The birds hadn’t preyed on the mothers in the sea because the cook had been feeding them his own blood.

But for the cook, the alternative had to have been equally unacceptable. The cook had done everything in his power to prevent the clash between the cormorants and the fish. During the spawning season, each fish carried thousands of its youngs inside its body. Losing a fish was equal to losing a thousand more in the next season.

The cook’s next words slurred slightly.

“The spawning season …It’s a celebration of life and birth.”

Life an birth, huh.

The cook was just trying to protect the ocean. As someone who directly depended on the sea to live on, he showed his respect by allowing it to rest and regain its strength for the future. That was why he had told Zoro to _listen._ That was why he had said that it was _the season_ and had been cooking meat recently.

“It was a good thing you took down that Horse Whale, though. He was just the gang leader. For better or worse, he wouldn’t have been spawning even if he tried.”

Somehow, Zoro found that he had placed his arms on each side of the cook’s head and was peering down into his eyes. The cook chuckled and closed his eyes tiredly.

“I wonder if any of those fish has been to the All Blue… if any of its children will reach it one day?”

That legendary sea the cook was always going on about. The ocean where it was said that all sort of fish could be found. The dream destination of cooks all over the world.

Others might have dreamt of the different types of seafood they could make out of that place, of the various bounty they could reap from the ocean. Yet all this stupid cook between his arms was thinking about was to give back its strength. He was protecting that place even when he hadn’t reached it, against everything he had had to endure.

The cook was probably wondering if he would reach that ocean too one day.

Under Zoro’s gaze, the cook’s lips quirked up almost imperceptibly, and the same smile that Zoro had caught glimpse of on so many occasions presented itself again. That _loving_ smile the cook had when he thought about the ocean.

Zoro found himself pulled towards the cook by that look on his face. Before he knew what he was doing, his lips were already pressed to the cook’s in the softest of kisses. Just the barest touch of the lips. A second of apprehension passed before the cook eventually pressed back, and Zoro became weak with relief. As the cook parted his lips to allow Zoro to deepen the kiss, Zoro’s hands went up to cradle the cook’s skull, angling him as their tongue met and moved together in a slow, sensual dance. They dragged the kiss out for as long as possible, neither willing to come up for air. He didn’t know how long they stayed like that, their tongues moving together, but when they finally parted, the cook had a feverish flush on his previously pallid cheeks, lips moist and deliciously swollen.

Zoro locked gaze with him again, and said with seriousness in every word as they looked into each other’s eyes.

“That didn’t change the fact that you are still an idiot, though, for trying to interfere with the course of nature.”

The cook looked back at him steadily as he replied.

“I know. But I couldn’t help it.”

Something in Zoro’s chest tore and he felt heart constricted painfully. He had pronounced the exact same words when the cook had lashed out at him for interfering.

The cook tried to put himself in between the ocean and the birds even when it was extremely dangerous. He had tried to protect the fish because he couldn’t bare to lose them. In the same way, Zoro had been trying to get in his hair all the time because he couldn’t stand to see the cook endure what he did on his own. Being held at arm’s length hurt almost physically. He just wanted to be depended upon, to be wanted.

That was similarly because the cook was important and Zoro just couldn’t bare to lose him.

Despite the raw vulnerability that he felt, Zoro placed his hands on the cook’s cheeks and said the next words as steadily as he could.

“Me neither.”

The cook began to chuckle, but it died on his lips as the weight of the confession hit him.

“…!”

Face heating up, the cook tried to cover it with his arms, but Zoro held onto his wrists to prevent him from hiding. No more hiding for either of them from now on.

“Guess Luffy did have a point, huh? That guy sure knew us better than ourselves.”

“What are…?”

“Nevermind that.”

Zoro let out a scoff and dropped his head onto the cook’s chest, feeling his warmth and listening to his heartbeat. When he had tried to listen to the ocean, all he could hear and feel was this same sound and presence.

“What did you hear… when you listened to the ocean?”

Slender fingers came up to cradle the back of Zoro’s head and carded through his hair. The gesture felt really nice, and Zoro thought he could fall asleep like this.

“…I heard a mother’s call.”

The cook answered in a soft voice, the fingers never stopping as they played absentmindedly with Zoro’s hair.

“A mother’s instinct is to be protective of her children, especially when she was expecting. The ocean’s maternal call was what I heard…”

The cook’s voice cracked at the end, as if he was reliving some painful memories.

“…It would break her heart if her children …were to be taken away from her.”

The last part was spoken haltingly. Zoro lifted his gaze back to the cook, but found that his eyes remained dry. Although Zoro didn’t know the true meaning behind his desire to protect the ocean, he could tell that the cook was not thinking about just a body of water.

Pressing his ears back against the cook’s heart, he heard the calming thrum as it continued giving life to the body in his arms. He tightened his embrace and spoke quietly.

“The ocean didn’t talk to me. This was the only sound I heard. This is the only sound I need to hear.”

The cook might have found his strength in listening to the ocean, but this was where Zoro found his. He listened to the steady sound of the cook’s heartbeat and revelled in the warmth of his skin.

Around them, the ocean was bubbling with life. A fish spawn came up near the surface. It was so small and translucent that it could have been just the tiniest speck of air bubble. Another one joined it at the tide, looking so identical that they could have been twins. Then another, and another. Soon, they were joined by hundreds others of their siblings. They converged and scattered, meeting and losing one another in the wide, wide sea.

A celebration to life and birth.

**Author's Note:**

> Ahem, Grilled here. 10k+ words in a week, just WHO have I become!?
> 
> This story is a classic ZoSan, something I haven't done in a long time. I've always had this idea that I wanted to write about, and it turned out into a full-on romance. This story is a homage to Yamato/Ichioku, the Doujin artist I admired the most. They have defined me in so many ways and I wouldn't be who I am without them. This fic resonated the kind of feelings I get whenever I read one of their stories, and I've read them more times than I could count. 
> 
> A lot of the plot came from "Dracula". The trepidation of those who could only powerlessly watch someone important waste away and all that. I'm sure you know the drills.
> 
> I really wanted to write about the All Blue as a theme, and I wanted to do it before they reach it in the series. We don't really know how it will be, but here's my take on it. Even though Sanji and everyone kept saying they'd like to cook with the fish from it, I just couldn't see Sanji as someone who would one-sidedly and greedily take from the All Blue. In our culture we have this tradition where we specifically pay respect to the sea/source of water by thanking it and letting it rest. I took the idea from that. Because he's kind and loves the sea so deeply, I believe this is something he would do. We also look at the sea as a "mother", which was why I made Sanji associate it with his own family. A little bit of trivia on the Vinsmoke there at the end. *winks*
> 
> My thanks to those who have stumbled upon this fic. I hope you at least enjoy it! If you like it, please drop me a comment as I'd really love to hear from you :)


End file.
